Ifton Heath

We slept reasonably well although we did both wake up in the early morning. Thankfully we were able to sleep a bit more before enjoying a leisurely start. Canal boat routine is a little different from home life; before showers are possible the engine must be run for 20 minutes to heat up the water. The engine must also be run to power the hairdryer!

We filled up the water tank, which took half an hour, before heading into Llangollen. We saw Thomas the Tank Engine at the station and enjoyed a little wander in the town. The early part of the day saw Sarah walking along the towpath with a walkie talkie while Andrew negotiated the various narrow sections, including winding (turning round) to head back down the canal. We had a brief pause waiting to cross the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct but we were quickly on our way and it was well-timed judging by the number of boats waiting to come the other way.

Yesterday we followed another boat through a lift bridge with another following us so we didn’t have to do anything. However, today we had to both raise and lower the bridge. Andrew did this using a windlass whilst being filmed by gongoozlers! We then passed back through one tunnel before reaching Chirk Tunnel, the longest on our route (421 metres). This then opens onto Chirk Aqueduct with the railway viaduct alongside, this marks the Welsh border. Sarah enjoyed walking along the towpath on the aqueduct, taking in the scenery.

We moored up just before New Marton Top Lock, which we will tackle tomorrow morning. We enjoyed a roast dinner this evening (old habits die hard!) We had a little walk to the lock after dinner to talk through locking in preparation for tomorrow.

The weather today has been perfect- dry, quite a bit of sunshine and not too chilly. All the better for enjoying the beautiful countryside.Read more